Three Things We Learned: Week Five

Maryland Athletics

10-1-2013

#1 Patience is a Virtue

Let’s go two ways with this one. Quite possibly the best example of patience on this year’s squad is senior forward Jake Pace.

After playing limited minutes his freshman and sophomore seasons, Pace came onto the scene in 2012 as a permanent fixture in Maryland’s attack. He’s flourished in his role as one of the first players off the bench, notching 10 goals in a little over a year – including five in 2013.

To add to the patience theme, Maryland is not scoring as early as it would like but has still managed to average 2.25 goals per game. Of the Terps’ 18 goals this season, 13 have come in the second half.

#2 It’s a Wide Open Field in 2013

If you haven’t been paying attention to the rest of the Division I collegiate field in 2013, it’s certainly time to start. The month of September resembled March Madness with multiple mid-majors wreaking havoc on historically prominent programs. Just last week while Maryland was reeling from a 1-1 tie with Old Dominion, North Carolina fell in Chapel Hill to William & Mary while defending national champion Indiana was topped by Butler.

With parity as the name of the game this season, the Terps will hope to continue to weather the difficult nature of the first half of the 2013 campaign.

#3 Cirovski’s Schedule Should Have Terps Battle Tested

Speaking of scheduling, it seems Maryland’s relentless 2013 slate just won’t cease, which should have the Terps more than prepared for postseason soccer – including the insanely difficult ACC championship in Germantown.